First modern humans were beach bums

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New discoveries of stone tools are causing archaelogists, in search of the first modern humans, to head for the beach.

Researchers from Mexico report, in Nature, that they have found stone tools in association with fossil beaches and coral reefs in what is now the Red Sea Coast of Eritrea in East Africa.

The tools date from 125,000 years ago, a period which coincides with the first appearance of recognisably modern humans elsewhere in East Africa. It hints at a 'sea change' for the evolution into modern human beings, towards a liking for oysters, boats and fishing.

There are two theories on the evolution of modern humans: the 'multiregional evolution' hypothesis which says that we evolved semi-independently in Europe, Asia and Africa between 100,000 and 40,000 years ago. The 'out of Africa' hypothesis on the other hand, argues that all modern humans evolved in Africa between 200,000 and 100,000 years ago, later migrating to Eurasia.

The researchers said their new discoveries support the 'out of Africa' theory. The evidence suggests that Middle Palaeolithic people may have used coastal routes to spread out from Africa, along the shorelines of Arabia and into southern Asia during or soon after the last interglacial event, possibly even reaching Indonesia during low seas.

The discoveries included bifacial handaxes - large, flat teardrop-shaped tools flaked over at least part of both surfaces - and also obsidian flake and blade tools. The mix of tools, said the authors, indicates that both old and new tool technology was being used at the time the reef formed.

The tools were dated by analysing the coral samples from the fossilised reefs around them in the ancient reef, using U-Th (Uranium-Thorium) mass spectrometry.

Dating these tools links the Red Sea site with several other South African sites. However, as no human remains have yet been found, it was not possible to determine what hominid species actually owned and wielded these tools. However, Chris Stringer from the Natural History Museum in London said that fossilised remains of near modern Homo sapiens had previously been found in neighbouring regions such as Ethiopia and the Sudan, so it is likely the tool users are early members of our species.